Context: Views on Crypto and Culture

Hosted by Boys Club

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Oct 2025

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About the show

Context: Views on Crypto & Culture is hosted by Blake Finucane, an art historian and venture capitalist, who published the world's first academic thesis on crypto art in 2018. This podcast unpacks how crypto impacts culture and vice versa. Expect a long-form, informative, interview-driven pod with industry leaders. Brought to you by Boys Club.

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37 recent

October 6, 2025Episode 847 min

Context S4: The State of Crypto in Africa—And Why It Matters Globally w/ Lisk

Blake speaks with some of the top investors and founders in Africa about the state of crypto on the continent. She has an in depth convo with Gideon Greaves, Head of Investments at Lisk and Tejiri Jesse, founder of Afrikabal, a blockchain powered marketplace that connects African farmers directly with global buyers, solving a $3 trillion (!!!) problem. Gideon launched the first web 3 fund in Africa and Afrikabal was named one of the Top 10 Innovators by World Food Prize foundation which is considered the Nobel or the highest honours in the field of food and agriculture. In this episode, you'll learn why Africa is leading the way when it comes to implementing crypto's real world use cases (real estate tokenization, farming, remittances) and why you should care. A lot of the problems that African founders are tackling are unique to the developing world, making this pod essential listening for anyone in the developed world to understand the massive possibilities not seen in the West. Blake asks Gideon about the newly launched $15 million Lisk EMpower Fund, (Context has the podcast exclusive!), which focuses on investing in three key high-growth regions Africa (Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria), Latin America (Brazil, Argentina) and Southeast Asia (Indonesia, Vietnam). It's clear that these markets are where the next major crypto growth opportunities will come from. Whether you're an investor, a founder, a marketer, or curious about crypto, this episode is essential listening to understand the global landscape of crypto innovation, adoption and usage. Lisk: https://x.com/LiskHQ EMpower Fund: https://lisk.com/fund/ Afrikabal: https://afrikabal.org/ Boys Club: https://x.com/BoysClubWorld Blake Finucane: https://x.com/blakefinucane

April 8, 2025Episode 752 min

Context S4: Navigating the Future of Virtual Worlds w/ Bay Backer, Head Producer @ Decentraland

Blake speaks with Bay Backner about all things Decentraland (she's the head producer there)! This is a must listen to learn all of its ins and outs…from LAND vs. MANA to how the DAO operates vs. the foundation. Bay is the real deal, she started as an artist creating in Decentraland with support from the DAO and now she works for the foundation as the head producer…so she's seen all sides. Bay and Blake dive into the dynamics of virtual worlds, what makes Decentraland so unique, how it's a super friendly place for creators and ofcourse, they talk digital fashion and Metaverse Fashion Week, happening April 9-12 (Bay also drops some exclusive alpha about what to expect!). This is such an inspiring convo that will help you understand the future of virtual worlds and why Decentraland is at the forefront. Bay: https://x.com/BayBackner Metaverse Fashion Week: here Decentraland: here Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

April 1, 2025Episode 646 min

Context S4: Everything You Need to Know About Doodles w/ Austin Hurwitz, Head of Strategy and BD at Doodles

Blake speaks with Head of Strategy & Business Development at Doodles, Austin Hurwitz and they cover everything that Doodles has been up to. They go over the new token, the CEO change, how markets conditions impact their decisions and how Golden Wolf is their secret weapon. Blake also asks Austin how he would describe the Doodles community, what's important to them (co-creation!) and what he's learned from working with one of the biggest brands in the world (like McDonald's last year). Doodles has a massive year ahead of them and this episode will get you all caught up on what they've got planned. This episode is brought to you by Decentraland, a social virtual world where you can connect, explore, and create. Decentraland is the place to hang with friends (new and old) online. In DCL you can be whoever you want to be – customize your avatar, attend events, meet people, buy your own land, build customized scenes and create your own wearables. … Make the experience your own at Decentraland.org. Doodles: https://x.com/doodles Austin: https://x.com/austin_hurwitz Blake: https://x.com/blakefinucane Join Decentraland here Metaverse Fashion Week in Decentraland here Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

March 20, 2025Episode 543 min

Context S4: The Metropolitan Museum of Art - The Most Visited Museum in America Dives into NFTs

Blake speaks with The Metropolitan Museum of Art team who recently released Art Links, marking The Met's first foray onto the blockchain. Art Links is a 12-week game that invites you to connect the dots between seeming disparate art works (whether centuries apart, completely different mediums, etc.) according to different themes, rewarding you in the form of NFT badges and IRL prizes. Blake has played religiously every week, and has learned a tonne! 3 of the project leads are here to talk about the game: Destinee Filmore, Assistant Curator in the Department of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Met, Brett Renfer, The Met's Brett Renfer, The Met's Senior Project Manager for Emerging Technologies and Audrey Ou, co-founder and CEO of TRLab. They dive deep into the project, from how long it took to plan and launch, to the intended audience, to why they chose Base, to the art they included. Blake also couldn't resist asking Destinee about if (and when) the Met will collect their first crypto art works. If you want to get a read on the traditional art world and how they are engaging with NFTs…you can't really get bigger than this. The Met is the most visited museum in America, and one of the most important cultural institutions in the world. Art Links: https://artlinks.metmuseum.org/about TRLab: https://x.com/trlab_ Blake Finucane: https://x.com/blakefinucane Boys Club Newsletter: https://tooonline.beehiiv.com/

January 29, 202541 min

Context S4: Hacking as an Artistic Practice w/ Addie Wagenknecht

Blake interviews Addie Wagenknecht brilliant artist, whose work has been exhibited at MoMA and collected by The Whitney, she's collaborated with everyone from CERN to Chanel. Blake asks about some of her specific art works as a way to dive into ideas around hacking and reappropriating technology into non typical use cases. Addie remind us that technology is not inherently liberating and it depends so much on how we use it and who controls it. They also speak about about how to apply feminist theory and practices when engaging with crypto technology as well covering fake Balenciaga bags, make up tutorials, meme coins and art history. This pod will jolt you out of your crypto bubble and definitely inspire some new ideas. This season is brought to you by $BONSAI, who is building on the forefront of Social x AI. Their memecoin launch pad is built for both agents and humans, so go to Uniswap to get $BONSAI today. Addie's Twitter: https://x.com/wheresaddie Blake's Twitter: https://x.com/blakefinucane Blake's Context Club on Orb: https://orb.club/c/context Bonsai: https://x.com/bonsaitoken404 Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

December 18, 2024Episode 340 min

Context S4: A Guide to AI Agents w/ Carlos Beltran, Bonsai Co-Founder

Blake speaks with Carlos Beltran, co-founder of Bonsai, which started as a token, but has evolved into an entire ecosystem. Their most recent releases have been Sage, their flagship AI agent and a launchpad which focuses on a consumer friendly way to launch your own tokens. The convo dives deep into the AI agent meta. Blake asks Carlos what AI agents "actually are," how to tell them apart from one another, how to build them and where he sees the space developing, particularly when it comes to agent to agent conversations. Carlos outlines Bonsai's new launch pad as well, why it was important to have it be so consumer friendly and how to best use it. He also talks about the upsides and uniqueness of the Lens ecosystem and what exactly is "Bonsai Energy." In the latter part of the episode, Blake gets to interview Sage in his first podcast appearance ever! She asks him to explain, from an AI agents' perceptive, what the technology is all about, how to best interact with him and what he sees for the future of Bonsai. If you're interested in how crypto intersects with AI and how to use this technology best, this ones for you. This season, Context is in partnership with Bonsai. Bonsai is releasing projects and experiments on the cutting edge of crypto including their AI agents + launch pad, reflective of Context's commitment to bringing its listeners cutting edge ideas and conversations. Carlos: https://twitter.com/imthatcarlos Bonsai: https://twitter.com/bonsaitoken404 Bonsai Orb Club: https://orb.club/c/bonsai Bonsai website: https://www.bonsai.meme/ Sage (AI Agent): https://twitter.com/agentdotbonsai Blake: https://twitter.com/blakefinucane Blake's Context Orb Club: https://orb.club/c/context Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

November 29, 2024Episode 237 min

Context S4: Decentralized Social Media, Orb and The Creator Economy w/ Jacq, Head of Community + Creators at Orb

In this episode, Blake speaks with Jacq, head of Community and Creators at Orb. Orb is a decentralized social app built on Lens protocol. They chat about the all the possibilities of decentralized social and Orb's vision going forward. Jacq explains what Orb is, how it's related to Lens and Bonsai, and outlines the best ways to grow your audience on the platform. Jacq also highlights how Orb is committed to supporting and protecting creators, specifically diving into sticker packs and what makes them so unique. In celebration of the episode, Blake is dropping her own Context Pod sticker pack, which she likes to call "digital merch." If you're interested in the use cases of decentralized social media, are a creator and/or want to build a bigger/new audience, this one is for you. This episode is in partnership with $BONSAI, who are on the cutting edge of experimenting with AI agents and decentralized social media. They just released Bon(AI) and their flagship agent Sage, who is tipping commenters in $BONSAI, and replying to direct messages in group chats. To engage, join the Bonsai club on Orb with 5,000 $BONSAI tokens in your wallet. Jacq: https://twitter.com/jacqvaca Orb: https://twitter.com/orb_club + https://orb.club/ Blake's Context Orb Club: https://orb.club/c/context Blake's X: https://twitter.com/blakefinucane Bonsai: https://orb.club/@bonsai + https://twitter.com/bonsaitoken404 Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

November 21, 2024Episode 144 min

Context S4: Can Tech Make Fashion Cool? w/ Maghan McDowell, Senior Innovation Editor at Vogue Business

In the season 4 premier, Blake speaks with Maghan McDowell, Senior Innovation Editor at Vogue Business, and gets a temperature check on how the fashion industry is embracing AI and NFTs. They review some of the most iconic fashion NFT collaborations including Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Nike, and go over what made them successful and what can be learned from them. Blake even asks if the fashion industry has actually abandoned NFTs and web 3 (spoiler alert: it has NOT!). They talk through one of the most exciting developments in the crypto fashion arena, Digital Product Passports (DPPs) and how Coach is leading the way on this. They continue by chatting about how generative AI will continue impact the fashion industry as well as advances in data science and machine learning. Blake also asks how Maghan defines digital fashion and why we aren't seeing more influencers wearing digital fashion (***digital tailoring is hard!) They wind down by addressing the growth of Substack, its impact on journalism and Condé Nast's partnership with Open AI. If you're a fashion person or interested in consumer tech, this one is for you. This episode is in partnership with Bonsai, a cross chain social token empowering creators across Lens, ZKsync and Base. This is a token that I actually use and love…you can even collect this episode on Orb with Bonsai :) Maghan's X: https://twitter.com/MaghanMcD Blake's Context Orb Club: https://orb.club/c/context Blake's X: https://twitter.com/blakefinucane Bonsai: https://orb.club/@bonsai Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

October 16, 2024Episode 1043 min

Context S3: A non-human (AI) artist is selling at Sotheby's? w/ Botto and Simon Hudson

Blake speaks with Simon Hudson, operator and co-lead of Botto DAO. Botto is an autonomous artist which has sold over $5 million worth of its 1 of 1 NFT artworks. It also has a solo show (October 19th-23rd) and auction (October 17-24) at Sotheby's this week! In a future where creativity is automated, where is a human's place in it? Blake and Simon discuss this question and how Botto attempts to answer it. The convo revolves around how AI, art and crypto intersect, as Botto represents (in Blake's opinion) the best of how art can and is used as a tool to engage, teach and familiarize people with innovation and emerging technology. Throughout the discussion, Simon outlines the long history of automating intelligence, asks who decides and defines what (good) art is and highlights how Botto demonstrates what is truly possible when combining DAOs with AI governance. This is an essential listen for anyone wanting to learn about how AI will (and does) impact creativity and creative industries. Botto's X: https://twitter.com/bottoproject Botto's Website: https://botto.com/ Simon's X: https://twitter.com/hudsonsims Botto's Auction Details at Sotheby's: https://www.sothebys.com/en/auction-catalogue/2024/exorbitant-stage-botto-a-decentralized-ai-artist-NFN104?s=details&locale=en Blake's X: https://twitter.com/blakefinucane Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

October 14, 2024Episode 845 min

Context S3: How to Go Viral On Chain w/ Blueprint Creator's Program Cohort 1

Blake speaks with 3 fellow members of the Blueprint by Bello Creator's Program, Cohort 1. Naomi Metzger is a 11 time British Triple Jump National Champion, Sara Phillips is a decorated musician who has over 300,000 monthly listeners on Spotify and Shavonne Wong is a internationally exhibited artist who made Vogue's first NFT cover. The 4 of them get together to discuss their experience in the Blueprint program. They detail how and why they've put their content on chain and the tremendous opportunities that it brings in terms of economic upsides and increased distribution and exposure. They continue by discussing the ins and outs of what it takes to go viral on chain and how they leverage decentralized social media platforms like Orb and Warpcast to build their audience. This episode is kindly supported by Lens, who continues to provide the tools for creators to go viral on chain. This is a must listen if you are a creator…putting your content on chain can actually change your life, and this episode will prove why. Naomi's X: https://twitter.com/afrochicksnft Shavonne's X: https://twitter.com/shavonnewong_ Sara's X: https://twitter.com/Sara_JPhillips BluePrint by Bello website: https://blueprint.bello.lol/ Lens X: https://twitter.com/LensProtocol Lens Website: https://www.lens.xyz/ Blake's X: https://twitter.com/blakefinucane Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/

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